Impact of Technological Innovations on Hotel Industry

This report analyses the impact of technological innovation on the growth and performance of hotel industries. It discusses the technological trends emerging in the hotel industry, their implications, and how technological innovations are helpful in overcoming the challenges of the hospitality industry.

Assessment 2 Guide
Individual Report
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Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................3
Main body........................................................................................................................................3
Technological trends emerging in hotel industry...................................................................3
The impact and implications of technological innovations on hotel industry........................6
Implications of COVID-19 on hotel industry.........................................................................7
How technological innovations are helpful in overcoming the challenges of the hospitality
industry...................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References ......................................................................................................................................9
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Introduction
The hotel sector is contributing majorly in the overall growth and development of the UK
economy. With the rapid growth and transformation of hotel industry various trends are
emerging in this sector impacting upon their growth, structure and operations as well.
Technological innovation is one such important and significant trend which is emerging in the
hotel sector which has substantially redefined their operations. The aim and objectives of this
report is to analyse the impact of technological innovation on the growth and performance of
hotel industries. The Hotels industry of United kingdom is accounted for approximately £5.8bn
in 2021 indicating its high influence on the growth of economy as well as generating
employment.
Main body
Technological trends emerging in hotel industry
The advancements in technologies are growing rapidly implying the changes and
improvement in operations of hotel businesses. The trends emerging in hotel industry in context
to technology have provided better solutions and contributed in better services of these
businesses resulting in rapid growth and development (Sun and et.al., 2020). Some of these
trends have lead to savings in hotel sector and some other trends have bring advancements in the
infrastructure, buildings as well as other functional areas. Some major emerging trends in
relation to technological innovations within hotel businesses are discussed below:
Robots and infrared sensors: It is emerging as a innovative trend where hotels are making
effective use of robots for delivering relevant items to the rooms of guests which is enabling
them to offer futuristic experiences to visitors. For instance, a boutique hotel nearby apple's
headquarters have owns a robot named Botlr who delivers ordered items to visitors such as
toothbrushes, chargers and snacks etc. Such brilliant innovations in technology is reducing
manual labour and improving experiences of customers (Yadegaridehkordi and et.al., 2020). In
addition to this, the use of infrared sensors helps in enhancing visitors experience as they no
longer need to worry about housekeeping staff to disturb them and interrupt their privacy. Such
scanners are enabling hoteliers to detect body heat within a room which implies cleaning staff to
come back later.
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Wi-Fi infrastructure overhauls: It is emerging as a relevant trend among individuals to check
Wi-Fi connection in a hotel before making reservation and booking accommodation. The
availability of Wi-Fi is no longer a perk but has became a necessity and an important criteria
while check-in a hotel. Hotels are now investing in installing and maintaining a wireless network
within the hotel and they are moving away from the user pay model (Nam and et.al., 2021).
However it is not feasible for many hotels in financial terms to leave user pay model but hotels
are now rethinking to install high density Wi-Fi and work upon their pricing models.
Smart room keys: Hotels are adopting various innovations and installing technical advancements
in order to improve efficiency as well as providing customers with fast services and better
experiences. Smart room access system is another technological trend which allows guests to
unlock their doors through swiping their mobile across a keyless pad on the door. For instance,
Starwood (completely integrated operator and owner of hotels) owing hotels across United
Kingdom has upgraded 30,000 room locks across 150 hotels. The use of this technology
eliminate the worry of consumers to collect keys as well as of front desk staff in case of losing
keys.
Hotels apps and online websites: In recent years, the trend of maintaining an application for
everything in every area has improved the experience of users in order to promote
personalisation. Online websites are one of the major trend prevailing in hotel industry which is
significantly promoting operations of the businesses. With use of digital technologies and
software, companies are maintaining online presence through owning webpages which enables
customers to gain insights and information regarding availability. These websites allow
individuals to take a virtual tour of the hotel and thus their decision making has became easy in
order to make choices. Premier inn has developed their application where customers can do
advance booking and it offers many specialised features implying faster services offering great
convenience to individuals (Agyapong, Mensah and Ayuuni, 2018).
Energy saving technology: The continuous invention and advancements has promoted
innovation in many areas and hotels have adopted to various technologies for reducing costs and
improving performances. Energy saving technology promotes savings in terms of managing the
usage of resources and power which is promoting sustainability and responsibility as well among
hotel industries. The use of occupancy based sensors helps in reducing energy consumption and
thus reduce costs by thermal sensors and motion detectors. Such technology detect whether a
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room is unoccupied and thus it automatically shut off the power. Such sensors are also used in
controlling lighting and it implements saving of water in a occupied room. Moreover, LED
lighting also contributes majorly in saving energy and costs which also provide a cooler effect
improving the experience of customers.
Chatbots: Chatbots are undoubtedly one of the most strategic trend which is enhancing
performance within the hotel industry. Chatbots is used as an effective means to promote the
operations within a hotel organisation as they assist in solving queries of the customers which
reduce manual efforts. The use of chatbots eliminate the need of performing tiresome and
tedious tasks of answering queries of visitors all day (Shin, Perdue and Kang, 2019). Chatbots
allow the hotel staff in providing 24/7 assistance in asking questions and perform direct
bookings. Chatbots which are powered by artificial intelligence take care of the frequently asked
requests and thus it automatically transfer guests to the suitable department without presence of
telephone operator on staff.
Big data analytics: With massive number of guests availing accommodation and hospitality
services within a hotel on monthly basis, the function of analysing huge base of data helps in
decision making and enable hoteliers to gain insights on number and preferences of guests. The
massive amount of data could be collected and interpreted for the purpose of management of
revenue. Such data is analysed in order to devise strategies and identify specialised offers which
seems preferable by various target groups. Data analytics is emerging as a significant trend as
they help in improving customer experience through evaluating past data and insights on
behaviour and preferences of visitors.
Virtual reality: This technique is a great marketing tool and it helps in increasing time spent on a
hotel organisation's site and thus it helps in having positive impact on the google rankings.
Virtual reality tour and 360-degree video made available on hotel's organisation sites enables
customers to decide the selection of a hotel for staying and booking their accommodation. It
helps visitors in visiting the hotel virtually and thus it increase their time on the site which
increase traffic and thus it improves ranking (Olimovich, 2020). Moreover, through 360 degree
virtual tour, it helps in standardisation of customers as they know the features and amenities of a
particular hotel and expects the same during their stay.
Meta-search bookings: This technology is the future of booking and it helps in increasing the
rate of bookings by 180%. Meta-search engines such as Google, Skyscanner, TripAdvisor helps
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in serving as a relevant competitor research tool which is used by individuals to make
comparison between prices of various hotels and thus it helps in driving direct bookings to hotels
websites.
Social media marketing: It is a crucial technological trend which is emerging and is significant
within every sector and area of business. In context to hotel industry, the scope of social media
marketing is wide as this industry operates within the leisure industry and people significantly
share their experiences and stay on such social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook.
Hotel organisations maintain their accounts and pages on Instagram which helps in displaying
content and sharing customers experiences (Leroux and Pupion, 2018). Thus, it enables hoteliers
to promote their brand through online display of content and facilities.
The impact and implications of technological innovations on hotel industry
Automated operations: The growing use of technology in hotel organisations promotes
automation and thus it improves the efficiency and eliminates the possibility of errors as well.
The automation in operations reduce burden and need of performing tedious manual tasks
through adoption of techniques such as chatbots and other advancements of artificial
intelligence.
Improving customers experience: With the help of implementing technology, hotels are
providing better experiences to their guests by smart room access, censors and other techniques
explained above. The installation of Wi-Fi and use of robots in delivering services are allowing
consumers to enjoy their stay while availing high quality services offering great ease and
convenience (Hameed, Nisar and Wu, 2021).
Promoting sustainability: The use of energy saving technology encouraging sustainability
within hotel organisations as it helps in reducing the levels of energy consumption and ensures
that energy is not being wasted unnecessarily. The censors and highly technological scanners
assist hoteliers in promoting sustainable practices which helps them in reducing costs as well as
building positive image in society through investing in ways which encourage sustainable and
responsible business operations. Through implementation of sustainable practices, hotel
organisations can also significantly save costs and also improve customer experience through
installing LED lights.
Brand awareness: The use of social media marketing and meta bookings are promoting hotels to
enhance their reach within customers and induce brand awareness. Through maintaining
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presence on social media platforms, hotels are increasing awareness among individuals. Social
media platforms such as Instagram provides advanced features to users which helps in promoting
marketing operations of an organisation (Leung, Lyu and Bai, 2020).
Improved efficiency and productivity: The advancements in technological innovations has
promoted fast services which enhance overall performance of a hotel organisation. Through
virtual tours and advanced online bookings, hoteliers are able to promote fast services to
customers as it reduce their waiting time and also induce familiarity of individuals about services
and amenities of organisation in advance (Chen, 2019).
Implications of COVID-19 on hotel industry
United kingdom provides a range of accommodation facilities in various locations
through establishment of various hotel businesses. According to the reports of UNWTO,
Tourism sector has suffered a great deal due to outbreak of corona virus and thus hotel sector
was majorly hit by the impact of pandemic. According to the world travel and tourism council,
the business operations of hotel industry were majorly affected and influenced by the emergence
of pandemic as it stopped accommodation and leisure activities of individuals resulting their
downfall and collapse. The emergence of pandemic has lead to loss of approximately 660,000
jobs in UK hospitality and hotel industry according to the WTTC report.
How technological innovations are helpful in overcoming the challenges of the hospitality
industry
In order to cope with the challenges posed by pandemic technological advancements are
promoting automation of tasks through implementation of high techniques helps in enhancing
productivity by delivering fast services which improves the experiences of visitors and thus
brings betterment in overall performance of an organisation. The growing advancements in
technology are helping hotels to enhance their facilities and amenities that they provide to
consumers for improving their experiences. In addition to this, the online operations in relation
with online booking and virtual tour are enabling individuals to avail hotel facilities while
complying with social distancing standards. Online bookings helps in organisation of activities
and also eliminate hustle among staff in relation with allocation with rooms. It eliminates the
need of waiting in queues to make reservation and helps in handling crowd at reception.
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Conclusion
From the above report, it has been concluded that there are various trends which are
emerging in hotel industry in context to technological innovations. The scope of technology has
redefined the operations of hotel industry and has bought significant improvements in overall
performance of the organisations. The various technical advancements that hotels are adopting
implying their better performance and helps them in improving customer experiences.
Technological innovations has promoted the online operations of hotels to a great extent which
helps in reducing time of transactions and also reduces the possibilities of errors as well. The use
of technology supports automation which reduced manual tasks and helps in attaining high level
of efficiency in performing routine functions. The growing innovations in technology has
promoted the growth and development of hotel industry to a great extent.
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References
Agyapong, A., Mensah, H.K. and Ayuuni, A.M., 2018. The moderating role of social network on
the relationship between innovative capability and performance in the hotel
industry. International Journal of Emerging Markets.
Chen, L.F., 2019. Green certification, e-commerce, and low-carbon economy for international
tourist hotels. Environmental science and pollution research, 26(18), pp.17965-17973.
Hameed, W.U., Nisar, Q.A. and Wu, H.C., 2021. Relationships between external knowledge,
internal innovation, firms’ open innovation performance, service innovation and business
performance in the Pakistani hotel industry. International Journal of Hospitality
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Leroux, E. and Pupion, P.C., 2018. Factors of adoption of eco-labelling in hotel
industry. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 129, pp.194-209.
Leung, X.Y., Lyu, J. and Bai, B., 2020. A fad or the future? Examining the effectiveness of
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Nam, K. and et.al., 2021. The adoption of artificial intelligence and robotics in the hotel
industry: prospects and challenges. Electronic Markets, 31(3), pp.553-574.
Olimovich, D.I., 2020. The impact of innovative technologies for improving economy of
hotels. Asian Journal of Multidimensional Research (AJMR), 9(5), pp.194-201.
Shin, H., Perdue, R.R. and Kang, J., 2019. Front desk technology innovation in hotels: A
managerial perspective. Tourism Management, 74, pp.310-318.
Sun, S. and et.al., 2020. The impact of cultural values on the acceptance of hotel technology
adoption from the perspective of hotel employees. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism
Management, 44, pp.61-69.
Yadegaridehkordi, E. and et.al., 2020. The impact of big data on firm performance in hotel
industry. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, 40, p.100921.
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